From April to July 2007, the number of employed youth 16 to 24 years old increased by 2.3 million to 21.7 million, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported.

July is the traditional summer-time peak for youth employment. This summer’s increase in youth employment was slightly lower than last year's 2.5 million increase. Unemployment among youth increased by 548,000 between April and July, a smaller rise than in 2006.(Because this analysis focuses on the seasonal changes in youth employment and unemployment that occur every spring and summer, the data are not seasonally adjusted.)

Labor force

The youth labor force-16- to 24-year-olds working or actively looking for work-grows sharply between April and July each year. During these months, large numbers of high school and college students take or search for summer jobs, and many graduates enter the labor market to look for or begin permanent employment. This summer, the youth labor force grew by 2.9 million to a total of 24.3 million in July.

The labor force participation rate for youth-the proportion of their population working or looking for work--was 65.0 percent in July 2007, down from 66.7 percent in July 2006 and about 13 percentage points below its peak for that month in 1989 (77.5 percent). Over the 1989-2007 period, the proportion of youth enrolled in school in July trended up; youth enrolled in school are much less likely than those not in school to be in the labor force.

The July 2007 labor force participation rates for 16- to 24-year-old men (67.9 percent) and women (62.1 percent) were lower than a year earlier. For several decades prior to 1989, young men’s July labor force participation rate showed no clear trend, ranging from 81 to 86 percent. Since July 1989, however, their participation rate has declined by about 15 percentage points. Young women’s July labor force participation rate peaked in 1989 after a long-term upward trend; their rate has fallen by about 10 percentage points since then.

The July participation rates for whites (68.0 percent), blacks (54.1 percent), and Hispanics (59.5 percent) declined over the year. For all three groups, labor force participation rates were more than 10 percentage points lower than their peak levels for July 1989. The participation rate for Asian youth in July 2007 (49.4 percent) was not much different from July 2006.

Employment

In July 2007, 21.7 million 16- to 24-year-olds were employed. The employment-population ratio for youth-the proportion of the 16- to 24-year-old civilian noninstitutional population that was employed-was 58.0 percent, 1.2 percentage points lower than in July 2006. The ratio has fallen by about 11 percentage points since its peak in July 1989. The July 2007 employment-population ratios for young men (60.3 percent), whites (61.7 percent), and Hispanics (52.5 percent) were lower than a year earlier; the rates for young women (55.6 percent), blacks (43.0 percent), and Asians (45.6 percent) were little changed.

In July 2007, 22 percent of employed youth worked in the leisure and hospitality industry (which includes food services) and 20 percent worked in retail trade. In addition, nearly two-fifths of employed youth worked in education and health services, professional and business services, government, construction, and manufacturing combined.

Unemployment

In July 2007, 2.6 million youth were unemployed. The youth unemployment rate (10.8 percent) was little different from July 2006. The July 2007 unemployment rates for young men (11.1 percent), women (10.4 percent), whites (9.3 percent), Asians (7.7 percent), and Hispanics (11.8 percent) showed little change from a year earlier. The rate for black youth (20.5 percent) decreased over the year.